Stretching, Moving, Strengthening

Ok so I am a little over 7 weeks post-op now...YAY!!  And have been approved to lift over 10lbs again and resume normal high intensity activities (running, jump rope, etc.).  Of course that makes me SUPER excited and now I want to do everything all at once!!! hahaha but that's not how it works. I know that I have to ease back into it.  I can't start deadlifting 100lbs again, I have to work back up to it.  It's a slow process but it will be so worth it to feel strong again!!! :)

Also, I haven't been posting too often and I also may be MIA for the next few weeks as the hubs and I are MOVING to the mountains AND we bought a house!!! :)  So, we are in the process of moving and painting and updating and it's craziness but I love it!!!

YAY OUR NEW HOME!!! :) :) :)

Since this is my first week being able to do my normal routine (which is in my Previvor Exercise Guide), I have been feeling really sore and I love it!

This past Monday I did legs......Deadlifts, Split Squats, Stability Ball Hamstring Curls, and Squats and oooooooooh goooooooodness my legs are STILL sore and it's Friday LOL!!!  But it's one of those "hurts so good" feelings! :)

Here's a video of how to do split squats, in case you were wondering and wanted to make your legs super sore too ;)

Also, during the move, we obviously had no gym to workout in so I had to do an outdoor travel workout and use what I had!!!  You can always workout anywhere you go, take advantage of your surroundings!! :)

5 Weeks Post Op - Kick it into Cardio Gear

I'm 5 weeks post-op today!!  It feels like my surgery was so long ago, but then it also feels like it was just the other day.  I can still feel things pull and stretch if I move too quickly or if I try to grab something heavier than 10lbs (personal trainer here, makes it hard not to lift heavy objects at work lol).  The other day I picked up a 12lb medicine ball and took about 2 steps with it, realized what I was doing, and dropped it right there! Hahaha I literallly laughed out loud!!  Even though it felt ok to lift it, my PS specifically told me not to lift heavier than 10 lbs for 6 weeks so I'm trying really hard to follow those orders!

I've been following my Previvor Exercise Guide and enjoying the strength I'm regaining but am not enjoying how my lunges seem to always be screaming for air!!  I feel like I just can't quite catch my breath and like I am super out of shape!!  I taught my first spin class back after surgery this past Tuesday and ooooooooh man was it tough!!!  I was trying so hard to focus on my breathing, but when you have to breathe, work hard and yell and motivate your class, things get a bit crazy.  My head got all swollen feeling (my tight headband probably didn't help) and when the class was over I was very happy haha!!

Just in case you're just jumping into my journey, I had my preventative double mastectomy on March 18, 2014 and my final reconstruction and laparoscopic ovarian cystectomy on September 11, 2014.  I've been following an exercise guide that I created specifically for individuals going through upper body surgery!  This week I sort of had to change things up a bit  because I had Monday off work so I took a rest day that day, Tuesday I taught spin, yesterday I did a leg and core workout and today I'm teaching my Butts&Guts class and subbing Spin class for someone!  Whew!!!  Here's a video of the leg workout I have been doing on Mondays:

The workout is-
3 rounds of:
15 split squats/leg
10 butt lifts/leg
15 lateral lunges w/high knee/leg

This made my legs and booty nice and sore!!! :)

And don't forget to foam roll and wear pink this month!!

Questions or comments?? Email me at paigeperformance.connect@gmail.com!!

Previvor Exercise Guide WEEK 1

It's October!!!!! Wait, what?!?!  How'd that happen?!?!

And that means it's Breast Cancer Awareness Month!!! For all of us previvors, survivors, friends/family of a previvor/survivor let's help others to become aware and know that we are not alone in this!!! 

This week marked my first week back at work and it's been incredible so far!!  I feel more energized each day that I'm here and like I'm getting back to my normal routine!

This week ALSO marked the first week of starting my very own 12 week Previvor Exercise Guide!!  It is in a VERY rough draft stage right now and I am constantly updating it and adding to it as I follow it each day.  I designed it for anyone who has gone through upper body surgery (doesn't have to specifically be a previvor, could be a cancer survivor, someone who had arm, shoulder, stomach, gall bladder surgery, etc.)!  It progresses slowly so that the individual using it doesn't feel overwhelmed in the beginning.

Obviously, since each person is different and each surgery is unique to the individual, each person would need to show the guide to their surgeon(s) before beginning it to make sure they are physically ready to complete the exercises required.  My intentions are to help women gain back their strength, flexibility and endurance after they have had surgery using the guide as a step-by-step instruction manual on how to do so :)

For the first 8 weeks there are 2 rest days a week but, starting week 9, one of the rest days turns into a working day....just an example of how the guide progresses.  Also, to avoid complications, the guide is split into 3 sections - weeks 1-4, weeks 5-8 and weeks 9-12.  The routine for weeks 1-4 is the same each week so that the individual can become comfortable and improve in each exercise before moving onto a harder and more challenging exercise!  The exercises become more challenging every 4 weeks and require more strength and coordination.

Here's week 1:

I initially had just a walk on Monday but I realized that I felt good and wanted to actually do work.  However, since I am only allowed to lift 20lbs or less with my lower body, the machines didn't really give me a good workout....it pretty much did nothing.  So that's why I added a bunch of lower body body-weight exercises on Wednesday on top of the upper body flexibility work.  Initially, I only had the upper body flexibility work, but it wasn't enough.  And let me tell you......I am FEELING it....my booty is SUPER sore and so are my legs and I LOVE it!!!! :)

Foam rolling out the legs - hamstrings and glutes to be specific

Since it's Friday today, that's the workout I'm planning on doing.  However, based on how I feel, I might add to it.  This is why I wanted to "test" my guide out myself first before I publish it so I can know what needs to change!!

One thing I do need to think about is the fact that the recovery for both surgeries is VERY different.  The preventative double mastectomy recovery is much more difficult, slower and challenging than the final reconstruction.  ROM and flexibility is harder to gain back after the PBM and you tend to feel weaker (or at least I did) after the PBM surgery.  After the final reconstruction, you immediately have almost all of your ROM you had before the surgery (which might have still been limited since the PBM surgery) and I felt like I had more energy and strength right away (after the anesthesia wore off).

I hope you all have a fantabulous weekend!!!

Remember, if you have any questions or you would like to test out my guide and provide me with feedback, email me at:
paigeperformance.connect@gmail.com

Also, today's workout (friday) can be viewed in video form on my instagram page: fitness.paige